


carnelian

by lowkeyamen



Series: solitaire platinum [6]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: A New Boyfriend???, Communication, Dating, Established Relationship, Implied Sexual Content, Jealousy, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Relationship Discussions, implied threesome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:34:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24793186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lowkeyamen/pseuds/lowkeyamen
Summary: Yukhei isn't quite sure how to cope with the idea of Jaehyun falling for someone else
Relationships: Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Jungwoo, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Lee Taeyong, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Mark Lee, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Kim Jungwoo, Kim Jungwoo/Lee Taeyong, Kim Jungwoo/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Lee Taeyong/Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten
Series: solitaire platinum [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1003365
Comments: 20
Kudos: 148





	carnelian

**Author's Note:**

> they're back!!!! already!!!  
> god sapphire went on forever but I am v eager to get on w ten's backstory, tourmaline  
> BUT FIRST smth more lighthearted! And bc I missed Yukhei :( so here he is back again!!!
> 
> This fic takes place abt year after kunzite ends and just before the last chapter of sapphire when they all went on holiday 💖 it's a tiny bit angsty but people have asked whether anyone else joins the family and how they react and here's your answer! Pls enjoy 💖

_carnelian_

_helps one adjust to new situations and overcome jealous tendencies  
  
_

✧ ✦ ✧

  
"Jaehyun?" Yukhei waved his hand in front of Jaehyun's face, his boyfriend had completely zoned out. "Hello?"

"Hm? Oh, uh- Sorry. What were you saying?" 

Yukhei laughed softly. Jaehyun was so damn cute. Their first anniversary was fast approaching and Yukhei couldn't help but think he'd made the best decision of his life, taking a chance on Jaehyun, allowing himself to be indoctrinated into this slightly crazy but totally loving polyamorous family. 

"I was just telling you about this restaurant my parents have booked for next week. I think you're gonna like it."

Jaehyun beamed, fingers lacing with Yukhei's on top of the table they were both currently sat at. The two of them were heading out to Hong Kong next week so he could finally meet Yukhei's parents. What with work and birthdays and conflicting schedules, they had never managed to both go over there together, but it was finally happening. 

"I can't wait. I hope they like me,"

"They're gonna love you, don't worry! How could they n-"

"Hey, is everything okay with your food?"

Yukhei frowned as Jaehyun's fingers detached themselves from his own, rather skittishly. Weird. It's not like people didn't know about them. Honestly, it was a miracle they were being left alone. 

"Y-Yeah, it's great thanks!"

"Cool, just let me know if you need anything!" The waiter beamed before wandering off to another table, Jaehyun's eyes following him. 

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm great, why?" Jaehyun asked, shoving a fry in his mouth, almost narrowly missing because he was still focused on the waiters retreating form. 

"You're acting weird. Like… distant." Yukhei's eyebrows furrowed again as Jaehyun looked straight past him. "You're not stressing about meeting my parents, are you?"

"What? No!" Jaehyun crashed back down to earth. "I mean, a little. I don't think anyone expects their son to end up in a relationship like ours."

"They understand though. I think, anyway…" Yukhei hadn't kept the fact he was in a polyamorous relationship from his parents, not that he had much choice. They were definitely confused at first, but he was pretty sure they got it now. "They're happy for me."

"That's good." Jaehyun re-laced his fingers with Yukhei's, playing with the amethyst ring on his middle finger. He hadn't exactly met many of his boyfriend's parents. Sicheng's lived away and Doyoung's Dad absolutely hated him… So this was going to be different. "It'll be nice seeing your hometown, too."

"You've been to Hong Kong like a million times."

"Not with you, though! This is gonna be totally different."

Yukhei smiled softly. Honestly, it would be nice to get away with Jaehyun for a little while. He knew how important the rest of the his boyfriends were, and honestly he liked them all a lot too, but he did find it a little difficult having to share his boyfriend. He just wanted to spend some time just the two of them without any interruptions. 

Like right now. Or, at least that was the plan… if Jaehyun didn't keep completely checking out. What was going on with him today? Maybe he was just tired or something. Yukhei followed his boyfriend's gaze, locked into whatever it was Jaehyun couldn't take his eyes off of. 

That...waiter? Weird. Why? Did he want some bread sticks or something? Jaehyun wasn't usually shy when it came to asking for something like that. 

"Jae?"

Yukhei sighed as Jaehyun ignored him, thumb rubbing tiny circles into his hand as if on autopilot. 

"Jaehyun?"

"What?"

"Why do you keep staring at that guy?"

"Wh- I'm not!" Jaehyun finally turned his attention back to Yukhei, the tips of his ears bright red. 

"Seriously?"

Jaehyun cast his eyes down to his plate, clearing his throat. 

"I just think he's cute, that's all."

Yukhei quirked an eyebrow. Really? They were on a _date_ and Jaehyun was fawning over their waiter? Was he- No. calm down, Yukhei. You're being hypocritical. _You_ were the cute boy he was fawning over not that long ago. 

"You're hopeless."

"I'm not!" Jaehyun pouted as Yukhei poked at his bottom lip with a fry, trying to hand feed him like the baby he was acting like. "I'm sorry, I'll stop. His cheekbones are just… insane."

Yukhei scoffed as the two of them went back to eating and chatting casually. He felt like this shouldn't make him feel weird. Like it was accepted in their family or something, but… it did. He had kind of figured that he was the last one. That Jaehyun couldn't possibly fall for anyone else because six was already a crazy amount of boyfriends to have. But...maybe he was wrong. Maybe he wasn't enough. 

✧ ✦ ✧

The next few weeks were perfect. Yukhei absolutely revelled in getting Jaehyun all to himself. He knew it was selfish and that everyone else deserved some Jaehyun time too, but he sort of liked being able to act like a normal couple every once in a while. 

Yukhei wouldn't say that he was finding this whole polyamorous thing hard… per se. He loved all of the other boys, just not in the same way he loved Jaehyun. He loved that Sicheng was his home away from home, that he always had someone to talk to and could consider a best friend. He loved the way Ten would cling to him when the two of them were out somewhere together, before inevitably falling into one of their beds and having the very life sucked out of him via his dick. He loved that Taeyong wanted to look after him so badly, that the majority of their time spent together was in the kitchen; Yukhei peeling the vegetables for whatever Taeyong was whipping up that night. It made him miss his parents a lot less. He loved that when he needed a night to just chill, he could always rely on Doyoung to go out and get a couple of beers with him, where the two of them would talk about absolutely nothing for hours and come home unable to stop laughing. And then there was Jungwoo… 

Yukhei felt hypocritical about occasionally having doubts about this whole relationship, mainly when he felt like he hadn't seen Jaehyun forever, because he had Jungwoo too. Yukhei had never expected to fall for anyone else, even though he knew that was okay. He always imagined it would just be him and Jaehyun, that maybe he'd make out or sleep with some of the other boys on occasion, but then he fell… Really hard. 

Which was why he wouldn't say he found being in a relationship like this hard, _per se._ He loved all of the other boys so much; he just struggled with having to share Jaehyun between so many people sometimes. There were days where all he wanted was to curl up in his boyfriend's arms, days where he'd had really shitty photographers or directors shouting at him and Jaehyun understood exactly what that was like so he was the only one he wanted to talk to about it, but he'd come home to find that Jaehyun was already out with someone else. And he felt _awful_ for having those bouts of jealousy, especially considering he was the new kid. He felt like realistically he should be sixth in line to Jaehyun's affection, that the rest have priority over him. It wasn't like Jaehyun had ever treated him like that, like he was less important because they hadn't known each other as long, but he could never bring himself to interrupt Jaehyun's time with anyone else. So he was often left feeling…a little unfulfilled. 

But right now that didn't matter. He was in his home country and he had Jaehyun all to himself. 

"We should come here more often." Jaehyun sighed, resting his head on Yukhei's shoulder as they looked out at the Lam Tsuen River. It looked so pretty all lit up at night. "I get homesick after a few days away from London; I don't know how you do it."

"It helps that I have you." Jaehyun giggled, He _giggled_ , as Yukhei pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I wish it wasn't so far away though, sometimes. Like, if I could come back and visit just for a day or something."

"We'll organise something soon." Jaehyun hummed as Yukhei's fingers laced with his own. He still couldn't get over how tiny his hands felt compared to the younger's, he didn't have that with any of his other boyfriends. "Your parents want to meet everyone by the sounds of it."

Yukhei groaned at the thought, they had already embarrassed him enough in front of Jaehyun. Imagine if Ten got a hold of his baby pictures? He'd never hear the end of it. 

"That's not happening. I can't cope,"

"But your Mum is so sweet! Jungwoo would absolutely love her."

Yukhei guessed that was right, Jungwoo loved just about everyone. But that didn't mean he was going to allow it. His mother had already asked Jaehyun enough about his sex life, having so many boyfriends and all. Imagine if she actually met said boyfriends? Jesus Christ. 

"Still not happening." Yukhei shook his head in defiance. "Plus, maybe we should go to China instead sometime. I know Sicheng wants to go back."

"That would be nice…" Jaehyun trailed off. He had never actually been to mainland China before. "I know he wants to see his parents again, it just scares me a little."

"I think he needs it, though." Sicheng still hadn't come out to his parents, and Yukhei knew that was getting to him. He could easily live his life without them knowing. He was on the other side of the world for Christ's sake, it's not like they ever came to visit him. But he wanted them to know. It was like closure or something. He was finally happy with himself. He had gotten his top surgery a few months back thanks to his Christmas present from Jaehyun and he was accepted by the people that mattered most to him. The only people left to tick off of that list were his parents. He wasn't sure they _would_ accept him, but at least by coming out he'd know one way or the other. "Plus, he misses his cousin."

Renjun had already moved back to China having finished his studies in the UK and Sicheng missed him terribly, Jaehyun knew that. 

"It would be nice to have a family trip. Like, a proper holiday. We've never really done that before."

"And we would all be there for Sicheng if things don't go to plan."

 _"And-"_ Jaehyun added. "It gets you out of having your tiny little naked baby butt show to everyone by your Mum!"

Yukhei whined. Why did she have to show _that_ album? And why did she have so many pictures of his bare ass anyway? For fucks sake. 

"Shut up! Take me home."

Jaehyun laughed softly as Yukhei nudged him to sit upright, off of his shoulder. 

"You tired?"

Yukhei shook his head. "I want to teach you a lesson. For being such a little bitch."

"Oh? _You_ want to teach _me_ a lesson?" Jaehyun chuckled lowly. "That's cute."

"Yeah. I might spank you."

"And then fuck me with that monster cock of yours?"

The tips of Yukhei's ears burned red. Jaehyun _always_ managed to catch him off guard. Every time he even attempted to gain the upper hand he managed to cut him down and turn him into a stuttering submissive mess. 

"I- Y-Yeah."

"What's wrong baby? Thought you were gonna teach me a lesson?"

"I-I am! I'm gonna fuck you so hard."

"Make me beg for more? Make me scream like the little bitch I am? 

"Y-Yea-" Yukhei was cut off as Jaehyun's lips collided against his, teeth clashing together in a forceful kiss, right there on the riverbank with god knows how many people walking by. But he didn't care. He wanted everyone to know he belonged to Jaehyun Jung. 

"Let's go home, then."

✧ ✦ ✧

"Jaehyunnie!"

Jaehyun dropped his bags in an attempt to catch the tiny boy ricocheting towards him the second he and Yukhei walked through the door. 

"Hey, Princess. Miss me?"

"Always." Ten pouted, stealing a kiss from boyfriend. "You too."

Yukhei laughed softly as Ten pressed a kiss to his cheek from his place in Jaehyun's arms, legs wrapped around the elder's waist. 

"How was Hong Kong? How are your parents? I bet they were so excited to see you! Tell me everything!" Jungwoo shuffled into the hallway, followed by Sicheng. Both of them excited to see both Jaehyun and Yukhei after the two of them had been away for _ten whole days._

"It was great!"

"I saw so many cute baby photos of Xuxi!" Jaehyun leaned in close to Jungwoo's ear to whisper, just loud enough for Yukhei to hear. "I took pictures for you, don't worry."

"Hey!" Yukhei groaned as Jungwoo practically bounced with excitement. 

"We couldn't be bothered to cook so we've ordered chicken but Doyoung's probably eaten most of it."

"I haven't!" A call came from the living room. "There's fucking loads left!"

The seven of them settled down in the living room to watch whatever was on Netflix. It was Taeyong's turn to choose so obviously that meant the latest Louis Theroux documentary considering the eldests massive crush on him. 

Yukhei nuzzled into Sicheng's shoulder, shattered from the thirteen hour flight. Jetlag always killed him, and this was no exception. It didn't help that he was wrapped up in the warmth of his family. His British family, anyway. Jungwoo's arms wrapped around his waist, half laid out on top of him, Sicheng's fingers absentmindedly playing with his own as he tried to concentrate on the prison dynamics on the television. Ten and Taeyong were snuggled up on one of the other sofas, the younger pressing soft kisses to Taeyong's jawline in an attempt to distract him from the documentary, but to no avail. And on the last sofa Jaehyun was already passed out, head in Doyoung's lap as the elder stroked fingers through his hair. 

Yukhei definitely never expected his life to turn out like this, but he also never expected to be this happy. He wasn't sure he could ever feel this much love or warmth from just one person. This relationship, this family, was something that was so completely unique to them. Something so intense that most people would never experience it in their lives because they think what they have is sordid, that only two people are meant to be together. Most people don't understand what they have, and honestly, Yukhei was okay with that. He didn't need anyone else to understand, because he does himself, and he knew that he was happy. 

He let his eyes flutter shut, jetlag taking over as he breathed in Sicheng's scent, nose buried in the elder's neck. 

What they had was perfect to him, it may be far from conventional and it took him a while to come around to the idea, but…being here, with the six of them? He couldn't think of anywhere else he'd rather be. 

✧ ✦ ✧

"I'm just gonna get the same as last time, that burger was fucking amazing."

"Really?" Yukhei grumbled. He honestly had no idea why Jaehyun had brought him back here; the food wasn't even that good. Last time they gave him barely any fries and his chicken wings were all bone. But his boyfriend had insisted and who was he to say no? Not when Jaehyun was paying and he'd barely seen the elder since they got back from Hong Kong. 

"Yeah... You ready to order?"

"I dunno I'm still-"

"Excuse me!" Jaehyun cut Yukhei off, flagging down a waiter before the other was ready. Oh. Okay then. Why was Jaehyun in such a rush here? Did he have somewhere to be? 

Yukhei didn't miss Jaehyun's huge dimpled smile as someone approached him. Jaehyun was always polite and everything, but...

"Hi! Can I take your order?"

Yukhei's jaw dropped as the waiter approached him. It was... Seriously? _That's_ why Jaehyun brought him here? Because he had a crush on the fucking waiter? Jesus Christ. 

"Yeah, what would you recommend?" 

Yukhei rolled his eyes as the waiter pointed to something on the menu, Jaehyun's finger following as he laughed softly. God. Was he this bad at flirting when Yukhei first met him? Had he just not realised because he was so enamoured with _the_ Jaehyun Jung? 

He went back to his menu, ignoring Jaehyun and the waiter - Mark, apparently, or at least that's what it said on his name badge. It would have been nice for Jaehyun to actually tell him this was why he has brought him here, instead of disguising this as a little alone time. 

"And what would you like today?" Yukhei scoffed as Mark spoke up. _Mark._ What kind of teenage boy was called Mark? In fact, why was Jaehyun even crushing on a teenage boy? He was twenty-five. A grown ass man. 

"Whatever my boyfriend's having." Yukhei smiled sweetly. Jesus Christ when did he get so possessive and petty? He wasn't usually he just- What the fuck was Jaehyun playing at here? 

"No problem!" Mark chirped before dashing off to the kitchen, leaving a blushing Jaehyun and a pissed off Yukhei in his midst. 

"Really Jaehyun?"

"Really what?"

"You brought me here - to this mediocre at best restaurant - so you could flirt with the teenage waiter? What's wrong with you?"

"He's your age."

"Well he looks- Wait. How do you know that?"

"We've been texting; I gave him my number last time we came here."

Yukhei's jaw dropped. He- They had been texting? Surely that should be something Jaehyun would tell him about, right? 

"Do the others know?"

"I think I mentioned it to Taeyong."

"Oh." Yukhei cleared his throat. "Okay, then."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"I dunno." Yukhei shrugged. He didn't fully understand what was right and wrong in their relationship, if he was being honest. Maybe this wasn't a big deal and he was just making it into one. "Just kind of wish you told me that's why you brought me here. This was meant to be our day and you're flirting with some kid."

"It's not why! I thought you liked it here." Jaehyun's eyebrows furrowed slightly, looking genuinely hurt that Yukhei would think he'd ever do that. He would never use one of his boyfriends like that. "I'm sorry, baby."

Yukhei gave Jaehyun a weak smile, okay, maybe he was overreacting. Jaehyun wasn't like that. He'd never done anything in the past to make Yukhei question what an amazing boyfriend he was. Honestly, it amazed him how Jaehyun managed to make time for them all and he absolutely loved the other model for it. 

"No, I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound like such an asshole."

"You're kind of cute when you get all jealous, to be honest."

Yukhei felt his cheeks heat up. Stupid Jaehyun always making him blush. 

"You'll not be saying that when my teeth are sinking into your neck tonight." Yukhei smiled that goofy, toothy smile of his, a complete contrast to what he'd just said aloud. "I want to mark you up. Let waiter boy know who you belong to."

Jaehyun laughed softly, as if he didn't already know. It wasn't exactly a big secret anymore. 

"If you mark me then _everyone_ is gonna want to mark me." 

Yukhei simply shrugged in response. "That's what you get for being such a slut and having six boyfriends. You deserve to look like one too. All bitten up."

Jaehyun smirked to himself. Yukhei had been spending _way_ too much time with Jungwoo. 

"You're saying that like it's a punishment. The six hottest guys I've ever laid eyes on sucking on my body? Yes please."

"Be careful what you wish for Jaehyunnie, I'm literally texting Ten as we speak and you know there's no going back once he's involved."

"You must think I'm stupid if you think I'm going to say no to a seven-way fuckfest wi-"

"Here we go! Your chicken burgers!"

Jaehyun turned a shade of beetroot as Mark popped up out of nowhere. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. There was no way he hadn't heard that. Oh god. 

"Thanks." Yukhei smiled brightly at Mark, unable to miss the way the waiter's ears turned red. This was perfect. 

"Oh my fucking god." Jaehyun hissed under his breath. How fucking embarrassing. _"Please_ tell me he wasn't there the whole time." 

"You want me to lie to you?"

"For fucks sake." Yukhei couldn't help but giggle as Jaehyun hid his face in his hands, elbows propped up on the table. Was he really this pathetic when the two of them started dating? 

"Don't worry about it; we have much more important things to think about tonight. Like… who's sucking my dick tonight?"

"Do you think I should apologise?"

"What?"

"To Mark? Do you think I should go find him and apologise?"

"I'm literally offering you an orgy and that's what you're worried about?"

"Well, yeah. No. Of course I care about that too but… He wasn't meant to hear that. I don't want him to think-"

"What? That you have six boyfriends that you frequently have sex with?"

"Y- No! It's just... weird, you know? We've only just started talking and-"

Yukhei sat back in his chair, arms folded. This was… ridiculous. Jaehyun's priorities were fucking all over the place. Surely they should come before anyone new, right? 

"I mean, you're going to do it anyway, so, sure." Yukhei had never seen this side of Jaehyun before but he didn't like it. Was this how Ten felt when he first came on the scene? 

"Don't be like that, Yukhei. I'll just be a second; I just don't want him thinking I'm some kind of sexual deviant that's all."

"Whatever. Go." Yukhei mumbled, picking at a fry. He knew he probably sounded like a stroppy child, but he didn't really care at this point. His date with Jaehyun had been ruined. He felt like he was second in line to this kid Jaehyun barely even knew and he- He didn't like it. He may be overreacting or whatever, but he didn't like it. At all. 

He pulled his phone out, opening the reply from Ten. 

_Ten: omg yes! i claim his chest u know i can't resist those nips (๑･̑◡･̑๑)_

Yukhei rolled his eyes fondly. He didn't want to ruin Ten's fun, but...

_Yukhei: Orgy's cancelled. I need to talk to you abt something._

✧ ✦ ✧

"I get it now."

"What?" Yukhei had literally just waltzed into Ten's room making a statement like that and Ten was meant to know what he was talking about? "Get what? What's going on? Why aren't we all sucking each other's dicks right now?"

"Why you were so weird about me going out with Jaehyun to begin with. I get it."

"Oh…" Ten thought they were way, _way_ past that. "Okay?"

"He has a new crush." Yukhei sat down on Ten's bed with a huff. "Like, I get it, I have no right to be jealous or whatever, but..."

"You are?"

"I mean… kinda? I dunno if it's jealousy or just like- He keeps taking me to this restaurant where this Mark guy he fancies works. They don't even have nice food, Ten. Like, he made our special day about… him. It was weird."

"Really?" Ten frowned, sitting down next to Yukhei. That was a dick move. 

"Yeah, it's just, like...I dunno how to describe it. I feel like a hypocrite because this time last year that was me, but...it's just weird."

"I know what you mean, trust me." Ten sighed. He knew that Jaehyun had a crush on someone else, that didn't bother him so much, crushes were harmless. It was when it developed beyond that, when Jaehyun would bring someone new into their lives, when he would fall for someone else. That's what scared Ten. 

Sure, he loved Yukhei now, the two of them were getting on better than ever, but part of him still couldn't understand why Jaehyun felt the need to go out and find more people to love. Were they not enough? 

"It's hard, isn't it?"

Yukhei nodded. It was... He knew it probably sounded stupid and hypocritical, because Jaehyun had five other boyfriends before he came along, but seeing him fawn over someone _new?_ That was weird for him. 

"I just can't get my head around it. Guess I thought I would be the last one or something."

Ten watched as Yukhei played with a loose thread on the hem on his t-shirt. He had never seen him like this before. 

But he got it. He totally got it. 

That was exactly how Ten felt when Yukhei came on the scene. Sure, Jaehyun had begun dating Sicheng and Doyoung after him, but that was different. Sicheng was his boyfriend first, and Doyoung was Jungwoo's. Jaehyun had just kind of fell for them. But he actively courted Yukhei. He went out of his way to impress him and date him and bring him into their family - just like he had Ten. It had made him feel special that he was the last one Jaehyun made a real effort to woo, until Yukhei came along and ruined everything. Well, not ruined, but it certainly felt like that at the time. 

And now he was going through the exact same thing, by the sounds of it. The old Ten would have found it hilarious that Yukhei was getting a taste of his own medicine, but he was a changed man. And he just felt sorry for the younger. 

"I know that feeling. Just... don't act like I did with you. I made things _so_ much worse. Maybe try telling him how you feel."

Yukhei stifled a scoff at the fact Ten of all people was giving him this advice. But...he was probably right. He didn't want to argue with Jaehyun, and he certainly didn't want this to come between them. He just wanted Jaehyun to know where he was at right now. That he really didn't appreciate him paying more attention to their waiter than his actual boyfriend when they were supposed to be on a date. 

"How do you think he'll take it?"

Ten shrugged. He honestly wasn't sure. Jaehyun was a good listener, but he could be real stubborn when he wanted to be, especially when there was a new boy involved. 

"I dunno, but I think it's for the best. Jaehyun appreciates honesty above anything. I'm sure he's not trying to make you feel uncomfortable. He just gets blinded by love or whatever."

"I mean, I don't want to seem like I'm telling him what to do, I just- If he wanted to flirt with this guy I'd rather he didn't do it in front of me."

"That's understandable, trust me." Ten smiled softly. He wasn't sure that even now he had grown up and managed to put all of his jealousy issues behind him he would be comfortable with that either. It just seemed rude. "Just tell him you don't want to go back there."

Yukhei whined as he threw himself down on Ten's bed. He didn't like this. Not one bit. 

✧ ✦ ✧

"You're doing it wrong."

"I'm cutting garlic, how can I possibly be doing it wrong?"

"I want it diced not sliced."

"It all tastes the same, what difference does it make?"

Jaehyun laughed under his breath as he watched Taeyong and Sicheng argue between themselves. Their relationship had come a long way in the last few years and that made him happy. Really happy. 

He had no idea what they were making, but by the amount of garlic Taeyong had Sicheng cutting, it was going to be delicious. 

"Marshmallow!"

Jaehyun hummed as Jungwoo sing-singed his nickname behind him, long arms looping around the elders shoulders from behind so he could perch his head on top of Jaehyun's. 

"I was thinking… You should take me on a date."

"Oh?" Jaehyun quirked an eyebrow. "Should I?"

"Yeah! It feels like forever since we went out."

"We went for a picnic last Saturday."

"See! _Forever_ ago!"

Jaehyun could practically feel Jungwoo a lips turn into a pout on top of his head. 

"You know, you could take me out on a date instead."

"But you have better ideas… and I like when you spoil me."

Jaehyun laughed to himself as Jungwoo rounded his chair so he could pop himself in his lap like the big giant baby he was. 

"I guess I could take you out though…" Jungwoo whispered close to Jaehyun's ear, finger hooking in the collar of his boyfriend's shirt. "I know you like being spoiled too."

"Woo." Jaehyun squirmed as he heard Taeyong snigger from across the room. He did like being spoiled, especially by Jungwoo, but… it still made him feel a little awkward in front of his other boyfriends. He was so used to being the spoiler and not the spoilee. 

"I'll take you out on Friday night. We can go to that fancy Italians you like. I'll even pay."

That sounded nice. Really nice, actually. His schedule had been a little crazy lately and he hadn't had much time to spend any one-on-one time with any of them. 

But…

"I'm kind of busy that night."

"Oh? Are you working?"

"No, I- I already have a date lined up."

"Really? Who with?" Taeyong turned, wiping his hands with a kitchen towel. He was working away that weekend, and Sicheng had been whining on and on about this photoshoot that was going to drag on into the early hours of the morning. "Doyoung?"

"No… You know that cute boy I was telling you about?"

Taeyong scoffed, rolling his eyes a little. Oh yeah. He had heard all about Mark. Jaehyun seemed infatuated with him. It was cute. He hadn't seen Jaehyun like this in a few years and it always warmed his heart in a way. 

"He finally gave in?"

"You make it sound like I hounded him. He was just busy cause he always works weekends, but… He's off on Saturday, so-"

"On Saturday?" Sicheng quirked an eyebrow. "Thought you were going out on Friday."

"We are, but-"

"But he won't know how to get to work from here because you're so irresistible he won't be able to say no to coming home to you?"

The three of them laughed as Jaehyun whined, face heating up. They had forgotten how fun it was to tease their overly romantic boyfriend about his crushes. It was his own fault. He shouldn't fall head over heels for every hot guy he saw. 

"You're all so cruel to me."

"Yeah, well, you deserve it. Ditching your boyfriend to go make out with some teenager."

"He's almost twenty-three!"

"Just a baby."

"He's a year younger than you!"

"And I'm a baby too!" Jungwoo quipped, cocking his head to the side. "And you owe me. I want a big fancy date with all the trimmings next week. I want you all dressed up and you can pick me up in the Bentley and everything."

"Pick you up outside our own house?"

"Where are you taking the infamous Mark, anyway?"

"When can we meet him?"

"Oh my god please bring him back!"

"No! You'll scare him away. Plus I never put out on the first date."

"You put out well before our first date."

The four of them turned towards the doorway as Yukhei appeared, removing his AirPods, all sweaty from his afternoon run. Jaehyun couldn't stop the low moan in the back of his throat. 

"Yeah, well look at you," Jaehyun unabashedly checked his boyfriend out. "How could I resist?"

Yukhei snorted, hoping he was already red enough from exercising that the way Jaehyun made him flush wouldn't be obvious. 

"What are you talking about anyway?" It was an odd set up Yukhei had walked in on; Taeyong and Sicheng in the middle of preparing lunch and Jungwoo perched in Jaehyun's lap at the coffee table as they talked about how easy the model was. Interesting. 

"Jaehyun's hot date on Friday." Sicheng wiggled his eyebrows as Jaehyun wrinkled his nose. 

"With Markie~" Jungwoo chimed in, giggling as Jaehyun whined yet again. Maybe he was the baby. "You're so cute when you get all flustered."

"With Mark?" Yukhei was halfway to the fridge to grab himself a glass of ice cold water when he paused. "That waiter?"

"Yeah, he and Jaehyun are going out, how cute is that?"

"Hm." Yukhei raised his eyebrows. "Cute."

The sarcastic tone of this voice wasn't missed, especially not when Yukhei bypassed getting a drink in favour of leaving. Maybe he was just being an asshole, but… they all seemed kind of excited and he didn't really understand it. And he definitely didn't want to stick around for any more of the conversation. 

"Is he okay?" Sicheng asked. It was so unlike Yukhei to be in any kind of mood, but he didn't seem himself. 

"I'll go check on him." Jungwoo hopped out of Jaehyun's lap, leaving the model slightly bewildered. He just caught Yukhei heading into their second living room. 

He preferred it in there. It had walls and a big corner sofa that they could just about all squeeze into. It was his preferred place to cuddle, better than their open plan main living room which had three smaller, separate sofas. Plus, he'd still be able to hear their conversation from there, figuring slamming the kitchen door behind him would have been a step too far in terms of rudeness. 

"Hey," Jungwoo popped his head around the door before stepping inside and closing the door behind them, giving them a little privacy, "you okay puppy dog?"

Yukhei's lips quirked up a little at the pet name. He found it a little odd at first but he knew Jungwoo had one for each of his boyfriends so it made him feel included. Loved. 

"I'm good."

"You sure? You seem… off." Jungwoo sat down next to the younger, fingers running through sweat soaked hair. Yukhei knew he should probably go up and shower instead of stinking the sofa up, but he just didn't feel like it. 

"I'm fine, really."

Jungwoo hummed, clearly not convinced.

"Is it about Jaehyun's date?"

Yukhei didn't respond. 

Jungwoo took that as a yes. 

"It probably feels weird, huh? Jaehyun hasn't been out with anyone since he met you."

"I guess… it's just- I dunno!" Yukhei whined, flopping down so his head was in Jungwoo's lap. He needed comforting. "I dunno. I knew he had a crush on this Mark guy, but… I didn't think anything would happen."

"It's only a date. Nothing might come of it."

"What if it does?"

"Then you need to let Jaehyun know if you're not okay with things changing."

"Doesn't that make me a hypocrite? After everything that happened with Ten? He wasn't happy about me dating Jaehyun but I kept going."

"Of course not. This is a weird situation and there's no rule book on how you're meant to feel."

"How are you so okay with it?"

Jungwoo shrugged. He wasn't sure. He always had been. 

"I guess when Ten came into our lives it was different. He lived with us way before anything happened between him and Jaehyun, and even though I knew Jaehyun liked him… it just didn't bother me. I kind of like watching him fall for other people. His heart is so big it can't be restrained and I guess I find that kind of romantic. If it wasn't then I wouldn't be in this amazing relationship."

Yukhei hummed, he could see where Jungwoo was coming from… kind of. Regarding the last point anyway. He wouldn't have a chance with someone like Jaehyun if he wasn't polyamorous, but… 

It was just weird. 

Or maybe he just resented this Mark guy because of what had happened on his and Jaehyun's date. 

"But I understand why Ten found it hard, and I understand why you do too. It's all new and- It's a strange situation to be in, I get that."

"Like, I know it sounds stupid because he already has five other boyfriends and everything, but… I knew that before we began dating. This feels different."

"You should talk to him."

Yukhei hummed. Maybe… But he didn't want to. He didn't have any right to tell Jaehyun what to do, and the last thing he wanted was to come off as controlling. His last relationship was beyond controlling - his ex telling him what he could and couldn't do. Who he was allowed to be friends with. Who he could talk to. He couldn't do that to Jaehyun. 

"I dunno…"

"He'll want to know how you feel."

"I don't want to sound like an asshole, though."

"You don't. You're allowed to have feelings, baby."

Yukhei groaned, rolling onto his side so he could bury his face in Jungwoo's stomach. He didn't like this. He wished he could just be like Jungwoo - so relaxed about everything. He didn't want to cause any problems. 

"You want me to speak to him for you?"

Yukhei shook his head. That would just make him look stupid. Pathetic, even. 

"Then I think you should. Our relationship relies on communication. I don't want anything coming between you two."

Yukhei nodded softly. He knew that, he just… He didn't want to be _that_ person. 

"I will." He muttered with absolutely no conviction in his voice. "I'll talk to him."

✧ ✦ ✧

Yukhei didn't talk to Jaehyun, obviously. He just didn't want to cause any trouble so instead he decided to bottle up his feelings and hope they'd go away. 

But now he was sat here in the living room as Ten fawned over Jaehyun, attaching a bejewelled broach to the lapel of his blazer to complete the look. 

"You look so sexy all dressed up." Ten pouted up at his boyfriend, index finger ghosting over the buttons of Jaehyun's black shirt, threatening to pop them open. "How about you take me on a date instead? At least you know I'll put out at the end of the night."

Jaehyun laughed under his breath as Ten wiggled his eyebrows. He was taking this a lot better than Jaehyun thought he would - a lot better than when Yukhei joined them anyway. He still had his reservations but this time instead of blowing up he and Jaehyun talked. And Ten knew now that he was never going to be replaced. 

"Maybe next week." Jaehyun's schedule was beginning to fill up. Going on a date with someone new meant all of his boyfriends wanted a piece of him. He was already taking Jungwoo out next weekend and Doyoung wanted to meet up with him and go for food and drinks after work on Wednesday. But he could always make time for Ten. "And _maybe_ I could stay in your room tonight, you know… after I get home."

Ten scoffed at Jaehyun's audacity. As if he was going to wait around for the possibility of his boyfriend coming home. 

"I'll be balls deep in Sicheng by then, babes." Ten straightened Jaehyun's collar out a little before petting him on the chest. "Nice try, though."

Jaehyun laughed under his breath. Fair enough. It's not like sleeping alone tonight would be the end of the world, anyway. 

"What do you think, Yukhei?" Jaehyun did a little twirl, showing off his outfit to his other boyfriend who merely hummed in response. 

"Your look great, as always." He deadpanned, causing Ten's eyebrow to quirk behind Jaehyun. That was so unlike him… 

"Thank you, baby." Jaehyun beamed, pressing a kiss to Yukhei's forehead, too excited to even pick up on the time of his voice. "Right, I gotta go. I'll see you both later, or tomorrow… Whenever. Love you, bye!"

Yukhei mumbled a _love you_ under his breath as Jaehyun practically slipped out of the door. He wasn't sure the last time he saw him so excited… and that hurt a little. 

"What's wrong with your face?" Ten slumped down on the sofa next to Yukhei, head resting on his arm. "You're being weird."

"No I'm not."

"You didn't talk to him, did you?"

Yukhei sighed. "No. I didn't."

"Why not? You don't want to cause a load of drama like I did, do you?"

"Of course I don't, it's just… I dunno. I'm not good with confrontation or whatever." He knew Jaehyun was nothing like his ex, but it still scared him. He had never been in a relationship where he could talk to a boyfriend. Where they would actually listen. He didn't know how to go about it.

"I would offer to talk to him for you but we all know that would be a huge mistake."

Yukhei laughed under his breath. Probably. Ten seemed to have calmed down a little since they first met, but he still loved an argument. 

"What is it that's bothering you, anyway? Is it because it's the guy from the restaurant?"

"I don't know." Yukhei whined, throwing his head back against the sofa, staring up at the ceiling so he couldn't see Ten. "I don't know what it is. It's just… It's weird. I don't get why."

"Why what?"

"Why he needs anyone else? And I know that's rich coming from me, he had five boyfriends before I even turned up, but… Why does he feel the need to keep dating other people? Where does it end?"

Ten hummed. He knew exactly where Yukhei was coming from because he had thought the same when the two models began dating. He couldn't understand why Jaehyun wasn't just happy with the way things were. And although he had to admit, he did enjoy having Yukhei around; at the time he just wanted things to stay the same.

"What if he falls for him? Will we have to move house? This place is too small for eight people…"

Eight? Ten hadn't even considered this being a possibility of having eight people living together… He didn't want all of his old jealous thoughts to come back, but Yukhei was right. That was a lot to deal with. It was already hard enough for the seven of them to all spend time together as a family. They often left for work at different times, some not coming back until days later. They were constantly missing each other. 

"I just feel like that's a lot and I don't know if I c-"

Yukhei stopped mid-sentence as a weight plopped into his lap, neck straightening to find Ten's face centimetres from his own, the elder straddling his thighs. 

"I totally get where you're coming from, but you need to stop or you're going to spiral. Trust me."

Yukhei blinked. Why was Ten on top of him again? 

"I think you need a distraction." Ten's arms looped around the back of Yukhei's neck, a smirk on his lips. Oh. That was why. "You need something to take your mind off of Jaehyun because there's nothing you can do right now. And then you can speak to him properly tomorrow."

Ten rocked his hips a little, just in case Yukhei hadn't totally grasped what he was getting at here - as if it wasn't painstakingly obvious. 

"But tonight we should just forget about it and do something fun instead."

"I thought… I thought you were gonna spend tonight with Sicheng."

"He isn't home yet." No one was. It was just the two of them in this big ol' house… all alone… together. "But I know he wouldn't object to joining us. You know he loves your dick."

"Ten!" Yukhei whined, face reddening. He still wasn't used to all of this. He wasn't sure he ever would be… Ten was so… He had no filter. He was so damn sexual - they all were. And it still made Yukhei all squirmy and embarrassed because it was still a little crazy to him that he lived in a house filled with attractive guys that he was allowed to fuck whenever he wanted. "Stop it."

"Stop what?" Ten giggled, bouncing in Yukhei's lap a little. "Don't you want to have some fun? I'll take your mind off of what's going on. And we have the whole place to ourselves…"

Yukhei's eyes winded a little. He hadn't thought about that actually. That was… better. The very first time he and Ten had sex it had been on this very sofa and Jaehyun had walked in half way through and Yukhei's soul had pretty much left his body, not wanting to deal with the embarrassment. 

But at least that was one less thing to worry about. 

"So we can do it anywhere?" Yukhei's eyebrows wiggled a little. 

Ten liked the sound of that; he was always up for a bit of adventure. 

"I guess so."

"Jaehyun's room?"

Ten burst out laughing, slapping Yukhei on the chest in the process. "Not what I was thinking!"

"How funny would it be if he brought that guy home and his bed was a mess?"

"Covered in spunk?"

"Could you imagine?"

"You're evil." Ten's smirk grew even wider, finger tracing along Yukhei's jawline. "I like this vindictive side of you. It's sexy."

Yukhei rolled his eyes. He wasn't actually being serious… Hopefully Ten wouldn't-

"But we can't. Though, it would be hilarious, but… even I'm not that mean."

"Where do you wanna go, then?"

Ten hummed to himself, fingers twisting around a piece of Yukhei's hair. 

"Hot tub? I know you like it in there."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That my window looks out into the garden and I've seen you bent over the edge with Jungwoo's dick in your ass more often than I would like to."

"That was once!" Yukhei flushed an even deeper shade of beetroot, if that was at all possible. "…The other time he rode me."

"Details." Ten ground his hips down one more time, reminding Yukhei what was really important here. "Come on; let's get your mind off Jaehyun. Soon all you'll be able to think about is how good I sound screaming your name."

✧ ✦ ✧

Yukhei woke up to the sound of an alarm the next morning. It was Saturday. Why the fuck was he being forced awake at ass o'clock in the morning? That wasn't even his phone… 

"Sorry! Forgot to turn it off." A voice spoke up from the other side of the bed. Oh, right he had stayed in Sicheng's bed last night with him and Ten. 

Ten's prediction was exactly right, the minute Sicheng came home to find his boyfriend and Yukhei fooling around he wanted in on the action. But he didn't much feel like getting wet so he had dragged the two of them up to his room. Yukhei couldn't remember how many times he came… But it was enough to send him to sleep with a smile on his face. 

But now he was awake he remembered everything. 

He looked at his own phone, realising the only notification on there was from Jungwoo wishing him a good night. He and Doyoung had gone on a little retreat for the weekend, rendering Yukhei boyfriendless considering Jaehyun was busy with _Mark._ Maybe that's why he was so pissy about all of this. He felt left out. 

But Ten and Sicheng had definitely made him feel included last night. 

He hadn't received any messages from Jaehyun, though. That probably meant he had been too busy to even think of Yukhei… 

He sighed to himself, clambering out of bed as Sicheng made grabby hands for him. 

"Where you going?" Ten was still fast asleep, curled into Sicheng's back in the tiniest ball possible. He had quite enjoyed being in the middle and snuggling into Yukhei. He was nice and warm.

"Just wanna go sleep in my own bed for a bit." Yukhei stretched out his back, not even bothering to think up a lie to make Sicheng feel better or whatever. The elder just hummed in response anyway, rolling over and wrapping his arms around his boyfriend. 

Yukhei made his way back to his own room, just wanting to dive under the covers and stew for a little bit. Part of him knew he was being petty and ridiculous, but he couldn't help it. This whole situation was brand new to him and he wasn't sure whether he would be able to get used to it. How many more people was he meant to share Jaehyun with? 

He knew he couldn't complain about the rest of them because they were all here before he was, but… new people made him feel uneasy. If this Mark did come into their family, then… what was stopping Jaehyun falling for more and more people? He understood that Jaehyun had a big heart and a lot of love to give, but when did it end?

He sighed from the very bottom of his lungs as he opened his bedroom door, hoping to fall asleep and forget about all of this for a few hours and just sleep, when he noticed there was a mound in his bed… a person? Was that Jaehyun? 

"Hey." A sleepy voice came from under the covers, followed by a mop of auburn hair. "Morning."

"Morning." Yukhei took a few steps closer to his bed; he wasn't expecting to have to see Jaehyun so soon. He wasn't even sure he had come home last night. "What are you doing here?"

"I came in last night and saw you all in Sicheng's bed so decided to crash here. Didn't want to wake anyone up but… You know I don't like my own bed when it's empty."

Yukhei hummed, he did know that. Jaehyun rarely slept in his own bed, actually. It was a wonder they hadn't sold it and used the room for something else. 

"H-How," Yukhei knew he was going to regret asking this. "How was it?"

"Alright." Jaehyun's shuffled back a little, swiping the corner of the duvet back as an invitation. "Wanna cuddle?"

Yukhei smiled softly, of course he did. That was one of his favourite things in the world. 

So he slid in next to Jaehyun, snuggling in close so their noses were pressed to one another's. 

"You have fun with Sicheng and Ten?"

Yukhei giggled softly, tips of his ears burning at the sheer mention of them. "You could say that."

"I love seeing you all get on, makes me so happy."

"I like spending time with them. Even Ten."

"You two have come a long way."

"Yeah…"

The two of them lay there in silence for a while, Jaehyun's eyes fluttering shut as he settled back down to go to sleep. He felt better now Yukhei was here with him. How pathetic was it that he could barely sleep when he was on his own? He had to get used to it when he was off in a hotel in whatever country, but when he was in his own home… Sleeping alone was rarely an option he even needed to consider, but Jungwoo and Doyoung were away for the weekend and Taeyong was on a field trip with his school kids. Jaehyun would have loved to have slipped in beside the three of them when he saw them when he saw them all together last night, but he would never have fit. 

So he took himself off to Yukhei's room because at least it smelled like him. That was comforting enough. 

But Yukhei felt like he couldn't just let things lie. He couldn't let them go to sleep together when there were so many things left unsaid. That would only make things more awkward when they woke up and he broached the subject. Jaehyun would be wondering why he hadn't brought it up earlier. 

"Jae…"

"Hm?"

"Can we talk about something?"

Jaehyun cracked an eye open. "Sure, what's wrong baby?"

Yukhei sighed. God he had been dreading this conversation, but he had to have it at some point. 

"Are you going to see Mark again?"

"I'm not sure; I was gonna message him when I woke up properly, why?"

"It's just- And this sounds stupid because… I knew what I was getting into when I began dating you and it's probably not my place to even say this since you-"

"Yukhei." Jaehyun stopped him, fingers intertwining with his boyfriends under the covers. "Just say it."

"I-" he sighed. God he hated the idea of even causing any animosity between the two of them. "It just feels weird."

"What does?"

"You and… Someone else."

Jaehyun nodded, not that surprised. This was in chartered territory for Yukhei; the rest of his boyfriends had become more accustomed to it. Even Ten. 

"Does it make you uncomfortable?"

"It's not that, it's… I dunno, it's hard to explain and I feel like an asshole considering this time last year Ten was in my position and I-"

"Hey, you don't have to apologise for feeling a certain way. Just tell me what's wrong."

"When you met him, on our date… It really did feel like you took me there just to go see him. The food isn't even good."

Jaehyun's eyes flickered down for a second before he nodded, urging Yukhei to continue. 

"And then… I dunno, like I never expected you to actually date him and then you did, and… I just don't really understand why. You have all of us… Why would you need someone else?"

There was a couple of moments of silence as Jaehyun waited to make sure Yukhei was finished, not wanting to barge in. 

"I don't need anyone else, I'm so happy with you all. Things are great, it's just… I guess when I like someone I want to try and pursue that, just to see what could come of it. That's what happened with you." Jaehyun smiled weakly, squeezing Yukhei's hand. "I would rather give things a shot than be left wondering 'what if?'"

"But what if it did work out? Then what? There would be eight of us. Doesn't that sound crazy to you?"

"No crazier than seven."

"But- We- I feel like I already struggle to see you as much as I'd like to… I just- It's not that I hate having to share, but… It's hard."

"I know it is, darling, and sometimes I miss you too. But I love you all so much. If I could clone myself and spend every waking minute with the six of you I would."

"I know that. I know." Yukhei smiled softly. Jaehyun still gave him butterflies and it was really annoying. 

"Listen, I do like him, but I would never do anything that makes you uncomfortable. Any of you. If you don't want me to see him again, then I won't."

"But that makes me feel like you're pinning it all on me. Like I have to choose whether you're happy or not."

"I'm already happy."

"Then don't see him!" If Jaehyun wanted an answer then he was going to get one. "If you're already happy I don't understand why you would even want anyone else."

Jaehyun blinked a couple of times before whispering out an 'okay', which Yukhei hadn't expected. He was bracing himself for an argument. 

"Seriously?"

"You're right, I'm happy with you guys. I just… I had a crush and, I should have just left it at that. I shouldn't be complicating our relationship even more by trying to add more people."

"R-Really?" Yukhei hadn't expected him to just cave like that. He had expected Jaehyun to put up more of a fight, but… He didn't. And that made Yukhei feel bad for some reason. 

"Of course. I don't want you feeling uncomfortable with anything. I'll call things off."

"Okay…" Yukhei had this uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. That was too easy… maybe he wanted an argument. Maybe that would have made more sense to him. "Thank you."

It made him wonder if Jaehyun had caved so easy when Ten asked him to break up with Yukhei last year. Whether he just threw away what they had like it was nothing… luckily for him Jaehyun had changed his mind, but… Was he robbing someone else of that opportunity? He was beyond happy that Jaehyun decided he wanted him back… What if this Mark guy was completely smitten too? 

"I'll call him in a bit, but- Can we sleep for now? I'm shattered." Jaehyun inched closer to Yukhei, tucking his head under the younger's neck, nose nuzzling into his clavicles in the hope that Yukhei would take the hint and wrap those long arms of his around him. 

Which he did. He breathed in the smell of Jaehyun's shampoo as he buried his nose in auburn hair, holding his boyfriend close.

He had gotten what he wanted. Jaehyun was going to call things off with Mark _for him._ Just like Yukhei had asked. 

So why did he feel so bad about it?

✧ ✦ ✧

"We're home!"

Yukhei's ears perked up; distracting him from the drama he was watching in the living room as Jungwoo unceremoniously burst through the front door. He and Doyoung had only been gone three days but he had really missed them. It was weird how empty and quiet the house felt when just one of them was away, never mind three. 

"How was it?"

"Amazing! Oh my god, Ireland is so beautiful, we should totally all go sometime. It's only like an hour flight."

"Count me out." Doyoung flopped himself down on the sofa opposite Yukhei, blowing his fringe out of his eyes as it flopped down with him. "Do you know how much they charged me for a beer? Not even a good beer; a Coors Light?"

"Uh…" Yukhei guessed that meant it was expensive, but from the way Jungwoo rolled his eyes and mouthed a 'don't bother' to him, he figured he wouldn't even try to guess. "I have no idea."

"Nine and a half Euros! That's like nine pounds, Yukhei. _Nine English pounds._ I could buy twelve bottles of Coors for that here. And I don't even like Coors but Irish beer tastes like dishwater!"

"Anyway." Jungwoo sighed, patting Doyoung a legs so he would move them, giving him space to sit down as Yukhei tried to contain his laughter. "It was nice. We had a good time."

"I'm tired." Doyoung yawned, stretching his legs over Jungwoo's lap for a second before rolling himself off the sofa. "That flight took it out of me."

"We were in the air like forty minutes."

"I'm still going for a nap." Doyoung pressed a little kiss to Jungwoo's hair. He hadn't exactly gotten much sleep the past couple of nights. "I'll see you later."

"Night night!" Jungwoo called with a sardonic scoff. It made Yukhei smile. The two of them were cute together. 

See, he wasn't a total jealous bitch. He didn't mind sharing… Just… Not with everyone Jaehyun laid his eyes on. 

"So, how have things been? Any gossip?" Yukhei rolled his eyes as Jungwoo moved over to the sofa and popped himself down, practically in his boyfriends lap. "I hear you, Ten and Sicheng had some fun the other night."

"We were bored." Yukhei smirked as Jungwoo wiggled his eyebrows, clearly desperate to hear the ins and outs. Yukhei was surprised Ten hadn't already told him all the gory details. "Jaehyun was out and-"

"On his date?"

"...yep."

"I totally forgot about that. He went? Did you talk to him? Sort things out?"

"Kind of… Afterwards…"

"You let him go without even saying anything?"

"I didn't know what to say! It was easier to just… Pretend it wasn't happening."

Jungwoo sighed. This was the opposite of what he hoped had happened. Maybe he should have made the two of them sit down, or spoken to Jaehyun himself. 

"Well what happened after. When you finally spoke to him?"

"He said he wouldn't see him again if that's what I wanted."

Jungwoo's eyebrows rose a little. There was some serious deja vu going on here. 

"But now I feel… Bad."

"How come? Did he make you feel guilty for feeling that way?"

"No! Not at all. Maybe that's why… I expected more of an argument I think. But he just- He didn't. He gave up whatever they could have had for me and I thought he was being selfish but maybe I am…" 

Jungwoo sighed. The word selfish was a complicated one. Was it really selfish to want your boyfriend all to yourself? Probably not. That's how most relationships worked. That's how the majority of the world saw things. 

And that was a little complicated in their relationship - it was like you weren't allowed to be selfish, not even a little. 

And while it was never really something Jungwoo felt, he genuinely loved watching Jaehyun fall for someone else and another person being added to their little family. But he knew it was a normal emotion for most people, and when it popped up among all of this it was difficult to deal with. 

He had seen it happen with Ten, and maybe he had been a little harsh on the elder when Jaehyun broke up with Yukhei, but that was different. Ten had brought Sicheng into their lives just years before _and_ he was dating Johnny at the time. 

"Maybe you should tell him that, then."

✧ ✦ ✧

Yukhei snuck into Jaehyun's room early one morning. He had come back from a shoot last night so was still fast asleep, but Yukhei wanted a cuddle. He felt like he had been avoiding Jaehyun recently… And he didn't want that. He didn't want this to come between them. 

So he slid in behind him, arms wrapping around the elder so he could nuzzle his nose into the back of his neck. Jasmine. Jaehyun always smelled like jasmine. 

Hours passed before Jaehyun woke up, shuffling a little as he realised someone was in bed with him. 

"Hey, baby."

Yukhei cracked an eye open as Jaehyun turned. He hadn't even realised he had fallen asleep. 

"Morning." He smiled as Jaehyun pressed a little kiss to his nose. "How was your shoot?"

"It was alright." He shrugged. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, I-" Yukhei shuffled a little closer so he could rest his head on Jaehyun's shoulder, urging the elder to lie back. "I missed you."

"Missed me? I was only gone a few hours."

"No, I mean, like- This. I missed this."

Jaehyun hummed, arms wrapping around Yukhei. It had been a while since they shared a bed, actually. Since he had gone on that date with Mark. 

"I'm sorry." Yukhei mumbled against Jaehyun's skin, fingers mindlessly playing with the excess fabric of his t-shirt. He was pretty sure it was his, which was why it was a little big on Jaehyun. 

"What for?"

"Being a jealous asshole. For- For making you break up with Mark."

"I didn't… I didn't really break up with him. We had only been on one date."

"I did exactly what Ten did to me and I shouldn't have. I shouldn't have made you do anything."

"You didn't." Jaehyun's fingers carded through Yukhei's hair as the younger looked up at him. His eyes were a little watery. "You voiced your concerns and I listened. I'm not going to see someone if it makes you uncomfortable. You didn't make me do anything."

"But you like him…"

"I think he's cute. I don't know him well enough to _like_ him."

"And that's because of me."

Jaehyun sighed. Where was all of this coming from? He thought they were over it. Thought they had moved on. 

"What's going on, Yukhei?"

"I just feel bad… I don't want to be the one getting in the way of anything. What if- What if you hadn't changed your mind when it came to me? We wouldn't be here right now. I wouldn't have Jungwoo either… I just- I don't want to be the one that could ruin something beautiful."

Jaehyun swallowed, nodding slightly. 

"You don't have to feel guilty or anyth-"

"Well, I do. And… If you want to date him then you should do it."

"Baby, you don't have to say that. If it makes you uncomfortable, then-"

"N-No. I want you to." Yukhei wasn't entirely sure that was true, but he felt like a hypocrite and he couldn't stand it. "And… Maybe I'd like to meet him sometime."

"Are you sure?"

Yukhei nodded, leaning in to press a kiss to Jaehyun's lips. "I just want you to be happy."

"I _am_ happy. You all make me so happy you have no idea."

"What if he could make you happier?"

Jaehyun scoffed. "I don't think that's possible."

"Well, you could always find out." 

Jaehyun thought it over for a couple of seconds. If Yukhei was being serious, then… But- He couldn't shake the feeling it was something he was just saying.

"And you're definitely okay with this? Because I honestly don't need him in my life if you're uncomf-"

"I'm fine." Yukhei smiled. He just didn't want to be the one that caused any trouble. "Go text him."

✧ ✦ ✧

Weeks passed and Jaehyun continued dating Mark. It always left Yukhei with a weird twisting in his stomach, but… it was beginning to fade. He was definitely getting used to the idea. 

Plus, it helped when he could lose himself in Jungwoo. The elder knew exactly how to take his mind off of something. 

But then the day that he had asked for came. He was going to meet Mark. 

He was the only one that had met him so far, Jaehyun said he was a little nervous of being thrown in the deep end and meeting everyone at one once. Yukhei has inwardly scoffed at that one - he hadn't gotten any choice. 

But Yukhei was the only one who had requested to actually meet Mark, so now he was going to have the opportunity to. 

"Which shirt makes me look hotter?" Yukhei held one up to his chest, quickly replacing it with the other. 

"That one." Sicheng pointed to the short sleeved black button up Yukhei had in his left hand. It was almost satin in texture and so tight on him you could see every single muscle underneath it. "Are you trying to intimidate him or something?"

"Wh- No! I just…" Well yes, maybe a little. "I just want to look good."

"I can't believe you're actually going on a date with Jaehyun and his new boyfriend." Sicheng scoffed as he lay back on Yukhei's bed to resume texting Ten. "That's so weird."

"I just want to meet him. Like, properly. Don't you?"

Sicheng shrugged. He didn't really… care. He wasn't opposed to Jaehyun dating anyone else, as such. He was just kind of over it. Even though the only person that had come after him was Yukhei, but… He didn't know. Something told him this wasn't going to last long so he was just keeping out of it. 

"Not arsed."

"Well, what if he becomes part of our family?"

"Then I guess I'll meet him then."

"Do you think I'm being too… I dunno, involved?"

Sicheng thought it over as Yukhei whipped his shirt off. Mainly to give him an excuse to stare at the model a little without getting distracted by speaking. 

"I dunno." He shrugged again. "I don't know what's considered normal. You'd be better off asking Taeyong that one."

"Well, he doesn't seem to be interfering like I am. Maybe I should just leave them to it…"

"Look, Taeyong is used to all of this. He and Jaehyun have been together forever and they've picked up five more boyfriends on the way. You've never been through this before. There's no rule book on how you should react."

Yukhei didn't even know what to say. He wanted to be like Taeyong and Jungwoo and let Jaehyun date whoever he wanted, but he wasn't. It made him feel weird no matter how much he tried to get over it. 

Maybe he wasn't cut out for this whole polyamorous thing. 

"My head is just a mess." He sighed, flopping down on the bed next to Sicheng. The elder was surprised that didn't cause the buttons on his shirt to pop open. "I don't know what I want."

"It's okay to be confused. This… It's not normal. We're never taught how to react to your boyfriend dating someone else. At least not being okay with it. Normal in this situation would involve throwing all of his clothes out of the window or whatever. But… _we_ aren't normal, Yukhei. Nothing about our relationship is normal."

"You got that right." He mumbled. It's not like he could go to anyone outside of their family and ask for advice because they just wouldn't understand. They would give him terrible advice because they would never be able to wrap their heads around their relationship. "I don't even know if I'm like jealous or… Or what. It's just weird."

"It is weird." Their entire relationship was the definition of weird. "I'd say you'd get used to it, but…" Sicheng wasn't sure that was true. Hell, Ten had voiced his concerns about this whole Mark thing to him privately. He was definitely a lot less volatile than he used to be, but Sicheng wasn't sure he would ever be 100% okay with Jaehyun dating new people. He just wasn't causing a scene anymore. "You might never. Everyone is different."

"I just don't want to be the one to ruin anything."

"You're not. They've been on a couple of dates, honey. He's not that serious about him. Trust me. It's nothing like when he starting dating you. He was head over heels instantly."

Yukhei hummed, lips tugging up at the corners a little. Jaehyun _did_ fall for him pretty fast. It still gave him butterflies whenever he thought about it. 

He wondered if Jaehyun had just been avoiding talking to him about Mark because he was scared of making Yukhei feel uncomfortable again, but… 

"You think?"

"I know. He's told me. He likes him, but… He's nowhere near being in love with him."

That… That made Yukhei feel a little better. The idea they were just taking things slowly… Maybe he was comparing it his and Jaehyun's whirlwind romance. Things had moved so quickly for them. There was as so much drama and high tension that it had been a little crazy and they two of them couldn't help falling too quick. 

But this wasn't like that… He wasn't going to have to prepare himself for Mark moving in in the next couple of weeks by the sounds of it. 

That put him at ease a little. 

"Look, you could always just stay here with me." Sicheng's index and middle fingers walked their way up Yukhei's abs, heading for his chest and making the younger giggle. "We can have fun instead of you torturing yourself all evening?"

Yukhei smiled. As tempting as that offer was… He had been the one to ask Jaehyun to set this up. He couldn't just pull out at the last minute. Not when Mark was expecting him. 

"Maybe some other- Sicheng! - time."

Sicheng giggled at Yukhei's reaction to him pinching a nipple through the thin material of his shirt. That was a shame. He could do with a little fun with his best friend. He'd just have to wait until Ten got home from his lecture.

"I should really go after making such a big fuss."

"Just try and keep a level head, yeah? Don't go full Ten on him or anything. You don't want Jaehyun to regret letting you meet him."

"I will, or… I'll try my best." He smiled softly. He really hoped this wouldn't be too much for him to handle. 

"Don't stress too much, yeah? You have the upper hand here. You're Jaehyun's _boyfriend_ and you look like _this."_ Sicheng looked him up and down. God that shirt was doing wonders for him. "Just chill out. Play it cool." Sicheng leaned in to press an encouraging little kiss to Yukhei's lips. He could do this. He knew he could. "And try to enjoy yourself, yeah?"

✧ ✦ ✧

"Are you nervous?" Jaehyun squeezed at Yukhei's hand. They were sat in a booth of some classy gin bar, secluded and away from prying eyes. Yukhei had gotten used to people staring at them, they were both well-known and it came with their jobs. But they both valued their privacy, which was why they came here so often. The VIP area they were sat in gave them enough that they could relax and enjoy one anothers company. 

But that wasn't enough tonight. 

"Yeah, kinda."

"It'll be fine. He's really sweet."

Yukhei nodded. He didn't exactly doubt that. It was just… This was a really peculiar situation. 

"Jaehyun?" The two of them looked up as they heard a voice. Mark. "I wasn't sure where you were. This place was so tucked away."

Yukhei's ears burned a little as Mark giggled. His laugh was kind of cute. Hopefully it wouldn't get too annoying.

"Oh! Sorry. It gets kind of busy in here; I wanted somewhere we wouldn't get disturbed." Jaehyun stood, ever the perfect gentlemen even though there was no seat to pull out for Mark to sit in. Instead he opted to lean across as peck the boy on the cheek, making Yukhei's stomach feel funny. 

"This is Yukhei. My boyfriend." Jaehyun gestured to him with a dimpled smile as Mark sat down. "And this-" he turned to Yukhei, "is Mark. My… My date."

Mark giggled again. Yukhei realised he did that a lot. Maybe it was a nervous thing. "That sounds so weird."

The three of them ordered some drinks and got talking. Well, Jaehyun and Mark did. Yukhei wasn't quite sure what to say. He felt like he was intruding. Like he was a third wheel in a way. 

"Jaehyun told me we're the same age." Mark smiles across the table at him before taking a sip of his drink through a straw. He had these crazy high cheekbones. They didn't look real. If Yukhei hadn't known any better he would have thought Mark was a model himself. "That's one thing we have in common, right?"

"Yeah…" Yukhei really didn't know what to say and he felt back because Mark was at least trying to make an effort. He had this accent… It sounded American, but… "Where are you from, anyway? I'm guessing not here."

"Canada! I came to London to study for my masters."

"He's studying music production."

"Oh? He'd get on with Taeyong, then."

"That's what Jaehyun said!"

As time went on and Yukhei began to lower his defences a little he could… He could see why Jaehyun liked Mark so much. Not only was he nice to look at, but he was funny and polite and sweet and kind of goofy and a little awkward- He was just a nice kid. Endearing. Yukhei was actually enjoying spending time around him. 

And he could feel the jealousy slipping. Because Mark wasn't trying to steal Jaehyun away or anything. He was just someone who wanted a chance to be with him. Just like Yukhei had last year. 

"How you doing?" Jaehyun turned to him as soon as Mark was out of ear shot. He had excused himself to go call a friend. 

"I'm good, actually. He's… He's nice."

"You like him?"

"Yeah." Yukhei nodded. He genuinely did. He could see why Jaehyun was so besotted with him. "He's cute."

Jaehyun smiled. He had been so worried about Yukhei lately. Not wanting to do anything to upset him. Worrying he was changing his mind just because he felt like it was the right thing to do. He just wanted his boyfriend to be happy. 

"I love you. You know that right?"

"I love you too."

"No matter what?"

"Of course." 

Yukhei let his head lull to the side as Jaehyun leaned in, letting him take control as always. This was nice, actually. It wasn't like they ever curbed their public displays of affection - they didn't care whether people stared or took pictures or whatever, it wasn't going to stop them, but it was nice to be able to kiss in a more private area where no one could disturb them or ruin the mood. 

Almost no one. 

Jaehyun drew back as someone shuffled into the booth next to him. 

Mark held his hands up defensively as the two of them parted. "Don't stop on my account. I get it. You're together."

"Sorry- Just-"

"He gets all nervous when he's trying to impress someone." Yukhei smirked, knowing Jaehyun was exactly the same when they got together. He was always so scared of being too touchy with his other boyfriends out of fear Yukhei would run a mile. 

"Seriously? _I_ make _you_ nervous?" Mark scoffed. He found that a little hard to believe. 

"He's gripping my thigh under the table. I can pretty much feel his hand shaking."

"Yukhei!" Jaehyun whined under his breath as the two of them laughed at him. Great. Bringing Yukhei here was a huge mistake. Now the two of them were going to gang up on him all night. 

But… At least they were getting along. Right? Or they seemed to be, anyway. That was something. 

"How about we go somewhere else?" Yukhei suggested as he slurped you the last of his cocktail. "It's kind of stuffy in here."

"Somewhere more lively?"

"With actual music?"

"And shots!"

Jaehyun rolled his eyes affectionately as the two of them laughed. Yeah. They were getting on just fine. 

"Are you both trying to get me drunk?"

"Absolutely!"

"Maybe then you'll chill out a little."

And he did. Once the bass was pounding around him and the alcohol was coursing through his veins he had no choice but to completely let go and fully let himself enjoy the night. He had his boyfriend here who he loved more than anything and this guy he hadn't been dating that long but he was seriously beginning to have real feelings for and they were getting on great. And having fun. And dancing. And not caring what was going on around them. Not caring who was looking over their way or trying to snap sneaky pictures. They were just enjoying each other company and getting to know each other and getting closer and-

Oh. Really close. 

Jaehyun's eyes widened as Yukhei's lips collided with Mark's, before they both pulled apart with a giggle. 

So that was… Hot. 

"You don't mind me kissing your boyfriend, do you?"

Mark shouted over the music, a smirk on his lips, eyes sparkling. 

"Considering he's had to watch us all night!"

Jaehyun hadn't even realised how many times he had kissed Yukhei, trying to make him feel better about this whole situation or whatever. He thought he had been being subtle.

"Of course not! Kiss him as much as you want!"

✧ ✦ ✧

Yukhei rolled over, eyes screwed shut, not anywhere near being able to open them. His head hurt. A lot. So did his ass. But he was glad that he came into contact with something soft as he moved. Something naked. 

"You need some painkillers?"

"I'll be fine." Yukhei sighed, nuzzling into Jaehyun's chest. Last night had definitely taken a turn. Sicheng was going to have his life for this. "How you feeling?"

"I'm good…" Jaehyun sounded a little hesitant. "How about you?"

"Good."

There was a little awkward silence between them as their breathing synchronised.

"We should probably talk about last night, huh?"

"Yeah…"

"I'm sorry if I-"

"I'm sorry that-"

They both started at the same time before stopping and laughing. Yukhei forced himself up into his elbow so he could look at Jaehyun properly. 

"I'm sorry if I stepped on your toes or whatever… He was your date and, I-"

"What? No! It was amazing." Jaehyun's lips spread into a wide grin. He was so scared Yukhei would have regretted last night. He was sure neither of them expected things to turn out like that.

"Really? You're not mad?"

"Why would I be?"

Yukhei shrugged. "It's just- I'm sure the first time you two slept together you never imagined I would be there."

"Well, no…" Obviously not. "But I was so scared you two wouldn't even get along, or that you were still having reservations, but- Then that happened."

Yukhei laughed to himself softly, turning so he could lean up against the pillows. 

"Yeah… It definitely wasn't how I expected the night to go, but… It was fun, right?"

Right before their date or whatever he had been considering completely bailing. Staying in and avoiding Mark for a bit longer. Then hours later he had ended up in bed with him. 

"He's nice. I like him."

"I'm glad you do." Jaehyun smiled, head resting on Yukhei's shoulder. "I like him too."

Yukhei hummed. Mark was… Mark was nice. He was genuinely really nice. That was a stupid, bland word but that's what he was. He was engaging and genuinely seemed to care what Yukhei had to say - genuinely seemed to want him there. He was pretty. Real pretty. And that laugh! Yukhei could honestly listen to it all day. It made him want to laugh too. It was completely infectious. 

So, yeah. He could definitely see why Jaehyun liked Mark. 

Because maybe he liked him a little bit too. 

✧ ✦ ✧

"You're all wrong!" Doyoung slammed his bottle down on the table, knowing the arms were ready to come out. "Hercules is the only answer. Hands down."

"You would say that." Ten scoffed, grabbing the tube of Pringles from Taeyong. "All those muscly men. Fucking queer."

Doyoung narrowed his eyes before giving Ten his favourite finger. "Your opinion doesn't count Mr 'The Aristocats is the best Disney film'."

"That's because it is!"

"It's _so_ boring!"

"You just don't have taste!"

Yukhei laughed as the two of them began to bicker. They were all sat in the living room - minus Jaehyun who was out with Mark - playing a drinking game and snacking. He loved nights in like this - the whole family all crowded together having fun. 

"You're both wrong actually."

"Ugh. He's gonna say something awful, I just know it." Doyoung groaned. He had learnt not to take film recommendations from Yukhei. 

"Mulan is clearly the best Disney movie."

"God, you're such a stereotype." Sicheng giggled from the arm chair, where he had secured a bowl of caramel popcorn all for himself. "The only one set in China."

"It's hilarious, though! And it has the best songs."

Ten hummed. He could get on board with that. 

"It's not the best, but it's certainly better that Hercules."

"You're all deluded!"

The discussion eventually mellowed into things less controversial. Whether they should order food or not and from where. What they should do for Sicheng's birthday in a few months. Whether they should have their first holiday together as a family. They were laughing and joking together. Having fun just the six of them. 

And Yukhei absolutely loved nights like this. He had been so scared of being lonely and never finding a little group to fit into when he moved here. 

But he had ended up with his own little family instead. 

"I'm proud of you."

Yukhei jumped a little as arms snaked around his waist from behind; almost spilling the bottle of Prosecco he was using to make Ten an Aperol Spritz. 

"Why?"

"Just for speaking to Jaehyun and stuff." Jungwoo mused; chin resting on Yukhei's shoulder. "I'm glad this didn't come between you."

"Yeah… He seems happy."

"He is. And so are you, right?"

"Of course."

"Good!" Jungwoo slackened his arms so Yukhei could turn around. Ten could wait for his spritz. "That's all I care about."

Yukhei hummed as Jungwoo kissed him, lips falling open in the hope of deepening it before he pulled away, a coy little smile on his lips. 

"Do you think he and Jaehyun will become, like, official?"

"Who knows?" Jungwoo shrugged. "Maybe. I know Jae likes him a lot, but…"

"Yeah…" Yukhei sighed. He knew that. And he got it. He totally got it, because… Maybe he kind of liked Mark too. He hadn't seen him again since that night, but- He would like to. 

"I hope we get to meet him soon."

"Me too. He's nice. Really nice. And he's actually really funny. Like it's that sense of humour that makes you think… 'what?' and then he apologises because he thinks he's not funny but he is and he has this little giggle that lights up the-"

Yukhei stopped for a second. 

"What? Why are you smiling?"

"Do you have a crush on your boyfriends date?"

_What?_

"No! What th- No!"

"Oh come on, it's okay! If you like him you like him."

Yukhei knew fine well his face and ears were bright red. How embarrassing. Stupid Jungwoo would read him like a book. 

He simply shrugged in response. 

"He's nice. I dunno…"

"That's cute." Jungwoo pecked him on the nose. There was nothing he loved more than watching his boys get all giddy and blushy thinking about someone else. And he knew that was crazy weird but he didn't care. He _was_ pretty weird. He just loved love. 

"What if Jaehyun gets mad?"

"He won't! Trust me. He wasn't mad when we got together, right?"

"No… He was happy."

"See! Don't worry about things like that. It's kinda normal for us."

Yukhei hummed, that was true actually. They had their own version of normal. One that may not conform to societal norms, but… it worked for them.

He stole himself another kiss from Jungwoo, one that was meant to be brief and fleeting but the elder couldn't stop himself from deepening. Yukhei's lips were kind of irresistible. 

"We should probably get back in there before Ten starts whining he's gonna die if he doesn't get a drink."

✧ ✦ ✧

"Can we please put something else on?" Taeyong whined, leaning back into Jungwoo's hold. They had been listening to the same three All American Rejects songs on repeat for the past half hour. 

"This is the only time Ten and Doyoung are civil with one another." Jungwoo whispered to his boyfriend, eyes on the two of them in an embrace as they screamed the lyrics to Dear Maria, Count Me In. It was just as well their neighbours houses weren't conjoined to theirs or anything. Imagine the noise complaints. "Give them a few more rounds and they'll be making out. It's better than them arguing."

Taeyong sighed, before realising Jungwoo was right. This was as peaceful as the night was going to get. 

Only he didn't realise how true that thought would be until around fifteen minutes later when Jaehyun came home. 

"Baby!" Ten was the first to see their boyfriend come through the front door, squirming out of Doyoung's hold to go pounce on him. Jaehyun had only been out a few hours, but it felt like forever for Ten, especially considering he had been drinking. He wanted to dance and get even more stupid with him. 

"Hey." Jaehyun's voice was soft, a lot less enthusiastic than Ten's. And Taeyong picked up on that straight away - maybe because he was the only sober one, or maybe because he and Jaehyun were so in tune he just knew when something was wrong. 

"Come drink with us! We're listening to all of Doyoung's favourite emo tunes!"

"Hey! I was never an _emo_." Doyoung held his beer up in protest. "I was _alternative._ "

Ten scoffed as he dragged Jaehyun through their open plan living room over to where the rest of them were gathered. Alternative. Whatever. 

"How was your date?" Jungwoo asked, interested as ever. He liked hearing about Jaehyun's dates with the others, but hearing about him falling for a whole new person was always exciting for him. "When do we get to meet him?"

"Yeah! You should have brought him over!"

"Oh please, you want to subject the poor kid to this?" Doyoung nodded over in Ten's direction. The younger was in the process of pouring them all shots, tongue poking out of the side of his mouth. Only he was getting more Kahlua on their glass coffee table than in the little glasses. 

"I think it would be a good chance to meet him. Ten's friendlier when he's drunk."

"So, when is he coming over? Surely we should get to meet your new _boyfriend."_

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Date, whatever." Sicheng scoffed. Semantics. Maybe they hadn't made things official yet, but he wanted to meet this Mark. He seemed to make Jaehyun smile. He seemed nice. "How come Xuxi got to meet him and the rest of us haven't?"

"Not only meet him, but bang him." Ten chipped in, trying and failing to open a bottle of Baileys to top off his Baby Guinnesses. 

"You're such a slut."

"It just happened!"

"You've officially fucked more of Jaehyun's boyfriends than the rest of us."

"He _isn't_ my boyfriend!"

Taeyong leaned forwards in his seat a little. Jaehyun was being uncharacteristically quiet throughout this whole exchange - apart from pointing out that he and Mark clearly were not an item. He would usually revel in this talk. 

"Hey, are you okay, Peaches."

Jaehyun looked up at Taeyong from his spot in the floor, before looking down at the mess on the table. Everyone's eyes were on him… He could feel it. 

"He called things off."

Yukhei's stomach dropped. "He what?"

"Why?"

"Just now? After your date, or… Where have you been?"

"Yeah, after." Jaehyun sighed. He and Mark has had a really nice night, or so he thought. They went to this little Indian street food place. He had learned that Mark wasn't into fancy restaurants and wines being paired with each course. He much preferred… normal food, as he put it. Food that filled him up and tasted amazing - not those tiny little plates that consisted of one slice of duck breast and a hazelnut foam - whatever that was. 

So Jaehyun let him pick, let him take the lead on this date because he wanted Mark to enjoy himself. And he seemed to. They laughed and joked and ate until they couldn't anymore. And then they took things to this little pub that only sold microbrewery beers and homemade bar snacks. It was cute, and Mark seemed perfectly at home there watching the band perform on the little stage in the very corner of the room. 

They learned more about one another. They held hands. They kissed. They made out _a lot_ in Jaehyun's car on the way home. 

And he had been… Honestly he was over the moon. Mark gave him butterflies. Made him grin so hard his cheeks hurt. Made him laugh and feel all giddy. 

He liked him a lot. In fact, he could feel himself falling. 

_"Tonight was a lot of fun."_

_"Yeah, it was. You are a lot of fun, Jaehyun Jung."_

_Jaehyun laughed under his breath as Mark raised himself up in his toes to press a kiss to the elders lips._

_"We should do it again sometime. Soon."_

_Mark's smile fell a little as his gaze fell to his shoes._

_"Thank you for tonight, really. It- It was great. You're great. And that… That's what makes this so hard."_

_Jaehyun's stomach flipped. This… did not sound good._

_"I think maybe we should end things here."_

_"Wh- Why?"_

_"Because I can't be in a relationship with you Jaehyun."_

_Jaehyun's lips moved, as if he was going to say something, but nothing would come out._

_"I like you. I like spending time with you and we have a lot of fun, but… I'm scared I'm going to fall for you and I can't do that."_

_"Why not? Why-"_

_"I can't be in a relationship with seven people." Mark laughed under his breath. He had been pushing that to the back of his mind all this time because, honestly? He liked Jaehyun. He liked him a lot, but… Not enough to be involved in his relationship. He couldn't just be another boyfriend. He wanted to be someone's everything. He didn't have a problem with Jaehyun being polyamorous or anything. He didn't really understand it, but… He knew it wasn't for him. "And I don't want things to go too far between us and then- It a better to just end things now, I think."_

_"Oh." Jaehyun hadn't really seen that one coming. Mark knew about his relationships - everyone did. Why would he even consider dating him if he knew he never wanted to be in a polyamorous relationship? Why not just turn him down straight away?_

_"I'm sorry."_

_"It's fine." It wasn't, but Jaehyun didn't know what else to say. Confronting people and standing up for himself had never been his strong point. He found it easier just to accept he had lost and try to get out of there with as much dignity as he could scrape up._

_"Thank you, for understanding."_

_Jaehyun merely nodded. He felt numb. Didn't know what to say. What to do. He just-_

_"Sure. See you."_

So he decided to just get the hell out of there. He didn't want to stand around and be mugged off any longer. He didn't want to start an argument because what was the point? He just wanted to go home. Back to the people that actually cared about him. That didn't want to use him for a good time and a few free meals before dropping him completely. 

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry, baby." 

Jaehyun tried to force a smile as Taeyong joined him on the floor, rubbing his arm gently. He knew if he were to hug him Jaehyun would burst into tears and he didn't want that. He didn't like crying. 

"That's a real dick move."

"Yeah. He used you." Ten backed Doyoung up, the two of them agreeing on something for a change. "I'm gonna kill him."

"Ten." Taeyong warned. Him getting all riled up was the last thing they needed. "Leave it, yeah?"

Ten sighed, reading the situation. Jaehyun was upset and needed comforting, not him kicking off. "I'm sorry, Waffles." Jaehyuns lips quirked up just a little at the stupid nickname. Ten rarely called him that, but he kind of liked it. "You don't deserve this."

"At least he's told you now instead of later down the line? Right?" Sicheng tried to see the bright side… or the slightly more well-lit side. But he wasn't sure it was working… Mark had clearly led Jaehyun on. 

"I guess." Jaehyun shrugged. "Look, I'm just gonna go to bed. I don't wanna spoil your night."

"You aren't!"

"Stay here, Jae."

"We can just chill."

Jaehyun smiled as he stood. They were all so sweet. All wanted to look after him. 

"Thanks, but… I think I just want to be alone."

"Let us know if you need anything, yeah?" Jungwoo turned as Jaehyun made us way over to the staircase. The elder just nodded in response which made Jungwoo's heart break a little. He wasn't used to seeing Jaehyun so down. 

The six of them sat there in silence as Jaehyun made his way upstairs, not quite sure where to go from here. 

"Maybe it's time for bed." Taeyong suggested. He didn't think any of them were in the mood to laugh and joke around now. And he didn't want to risk disturbing Jaehyun by being too loud. 

"Yeah, I don't really feel like these shots anymore." Ten sighed. He also didn't feel like tidying them up, though. Maybe he could just leave them there until tomorrow. "You wanna go up, Bambi?"

"Sure." Sicheng's stretched his back out. The party mood has kind of been ruined. Poor Jaehyun. He hoped he would be okay. 

The six of them got to clearing up before making their way up to bed, either in couples to cuddle up for the night or singularly so they could spread out and have some time to themselves. 

But Yukhei found himself hovering outside of Jaehyun's door. He knew the elder said he wanted to be alone, but… Jaehyun didn't like to be alone. He liked to be surrounded by love and to be held and… 

He felt like he should check on him because he was the only one that had met Mark… He was- He was beginning to like Mark himself and then- 

He sighed. This wasn't about him and his little crush. It was about Jaehyun. 

"Hey?" He knocked on Jaehyun's door before poking his head around the corner. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Yukhei knew that was a lie. He heard a sniffle. 

"Want me to sit with you?"

Jaehyun was already tucked up in bed, covers pulled up to his nose, but Yukhei could just about make out him nodding in the dark. 

So he peeled his clothes off and slid in behind his boyfriend, arms wrapping around Jaehyun's waist, chin hooking over his shoulder. Little spoon. Just how he liked it. 

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Not really."

"Just wanna lie here?"

Yukhei felt Jaehyun's head nod against the pillow. He wasn't used to seeing him like this. He- He wasn't sure he had ever seen Jaehyun so down. He always managed to keep a positive outlook and very rarely showed if he was hurting, but- Tonight was different. And Yukhei wasn't sure what to do. 

So he just held him. He let his eyes flutter shut and his breathing sync up with Jaehyun's so at least he wasn't alone. 

"I really thought he liked me." Jaehyun finally spoke up after god knows how long. Yukhei was practically asleep until his boyfriends voice rang through the air. It still sounded so tight. 

"I think he did." Yukhei responded, keeping his eyes closed. That was the truth though; there was nothing about that night they met up that made Yukhei think anything other. "I don't think he was using you."

"You don't?"

"Not at all." Yukhei hugged Jaehyun a little tighter. "He seemed genuine. And he really seemed to enjoy being around you, but… Not everyone is ready for this. Maybe he thought he could get used to it, but- Realised he couldn't."

Jaehyun hummed, wiping his eyes against the pillowcase. Maybe. He just wished Mark had been up front with him from the start. Told him he wasn't sure whether he could do this in the long run. 

But… He couldn't blame him, really. Mark had definitely said he wasn't ready to meet everyone yet. Wasn't ready to be thrown in the deep end with all of Jaehyun's boyfriends. 

He only had himself to blame, really. For not seeing the signs. For falling too fast like he always did. 

Only this time it didn't work out quite how he wanted. 

Jaehyun rolled over in Yukhei's arms, turning to face the younger. He loved how tiny he felt up against him. It wasn't something he got to revel in often - sure, Jungwoo and Sicheng were pretty tall, but they were built like soba noodles. Flimsy. 

Yukhei was big. Strong and broad and tall and those muscles made him extra cuddly. Jaehyun loved being wrapped up in his arms. He couldn't think of anywhere warmer. 

"I'm glad you were ready." Jaehyun smiled softly as he played with the gold chain around Yukhei's neck. He had to try and look on the bright side - he had _six_ boyfriends that loved him more than anything. "I guess it's a pretty crazy thing to come into, huh?"

"Oh god yeah." Yukhei scoffed. It had definitely taken him a while to come around to the idea. To even entertain it. But he wouldn't change it for the world. He loved this slightly messed up family he had found himself in. He loved them all. "I guess I am a little crazy, though."

"Crazy sexy."

Yukhei raised his eyebrows as he let out a little snort. 

"Someone's changed their tune."

Jaehyun shrugged, booping his nose against Yukhei's. "There's not use in dwelling, right? I can't force him to be okay with this, and- To be honest I should have just left it. I knew you weren't totally comfortable, and-"

"I told you to go for it."

"I know, but… I shouldn't have. You're more important than he ever was. All of you are."

Yukhei smiled. Jaehyun always managed to make him smile. Even if he was super cheesy. 

"I don't think anyone's ever broken up with me before." Jaehyun giggled softly. He wasn't going to let this get to him. He wasn't going to let it put him in a bad mood and ruin the atmosphere of the house. Realistically, he wasn't losing out on anything. He had six people who loved him and who he loved back. He didn't _need_ anyone else. He really was just being greedy. 

"That doesn't surprise me. You're kind of irresistible."

"Speak for yourself."

"Only one person has ever broken up with me." Yukhei rolled halfway onto his back with a deep sigh, averting his gaze from his boyfriend, before Jaehyun slapped him playfully on the chest. 

"I apologised for that!"

"Maybe I still haven't forgiven you."

"I got you back, though." Jaehyun smirked, propping himself up on an elbow so he could look over Yukhei a little. "Maybe I am irresistible."

Yukhei hummed, pondering over his own words from earlier. 

"Or maybe it's just because I'm a spoiled brat who always gets what he wants." Jaehyun half-lay across Yukhei's chest, tucking his arm under his chin so he could look up at his boyfriend, wiggling his eyebrows. 

Yukhei quirked his own eyebrow in response. Jaehyun bounced back from his heartbreak a lot quicker than he had expected. He wondered what it was like being that optimistic. That happy that things only got you down for a matter of minutes. 

"And what do you want right now?"

"Is that not obvious?" Jaehyun tilted his head, now fully resting on Yukhei's chest, index finger tracing patterns into his pec. He was playing coy, and it was actually really adorable. 

But it just made Yukhei want to play with him. 

"Not really."

"You gonna make me say it?"

"I'm not a mind reader."

Jaehyun pouted, pushing himself up so he was hovering just about Yukhei, noses almost touching. Yukhei simply smiled back. That stupid big goofy smile of his Jaehyun could never help but replicate. Yukhei had a habit of ruining his sultry vibes just by smiling. 

"You. I want you."

"You sure?" The backs of Yukhei's fingers brushed against Jaehyun's cheek. He had been through a lot today. He didn't want him jumping into anything when he wasn't ready. 

"Of course I am. Make me forget about him."

Jaehyun leaned in for a kiss, making it perfectly clear what it was he wanted, just in case Yukhei still wasn't getting the point. His fingers found their way to Yukhei's abs, making his stomach construct a little at the sensation of Jaehyun's cold digits on his skin. You'd think he would be used to it by now. Jaehyun's hands were _always_ cold. 

"Make me forget everything."

Yukhei let out a little gasp as Jaehyun's fingers dipped into his boxers. That would stop his teasing. Hopefully. 

"You really are a spoilt little bitch aren't you?" Yukhei scoffed as Jaehyun moved to straddle his hips, hand still buried in his underwear. 

"Does that mean I'm getting what I want?"

Yukhei's hips bucked off of the bed as Jaehyun's fingers looped around his length. He wasn't hard yet, but he was pretty sure it wouldn't take him long to get it up. 

"Maybe… You'll just whine if you don't. Little Jaehyun doesn't like getting his own way."

Jaehyun giggled again. It wasn't often Yukhei treated him like this and it was making him a little giddy. 

"Maybe we should call you Princess instead of Ten."

"Does that mean you're gonna treat me like one?" Jaehyun leaned in so he was practically lying on top of Yukhei, stealing a kiss before the younger wrapped his arms around him and flipped him onto his back. Jaehyun smirked, hair fanned out against the pillow, hands still stuck down Yukhei's boxers now the other model was looming over him. "Please?"

"I guess you've earned it… Baby's had a hard day, huh?"

Jaehyun nodded, bottom lip jutted out. He had, actually. A really hard day. He's had his heart broken. Been humiliated. Felt totally used. 

"Take care of me."

Yukhei smiled softly. Jaehyun was so… cute. When they first met he never expected him to get like this. He was so headstrong - knew exactly what he wanted and wasn't at all scared to go out and get it. He was confident and self-assured and strong. He was the one everyone went to when they needed reassurance or someone to make them feel better. He was definitely the rock of the family. The one that looked after everyone else. 

But he liked being looked after too, and it was becoming apparent to Yukhei that it was something Jaehyun needed more than a once every few months. He seemed to be slipping into his submissive pillow princess headspace more often than not. 

He wanted to be the one that everyone else took care of. 

He wanted to be doted on and fawned over while he just lay back and revelled in it, just like he had done to everyone else all these years. 

And Yukhei was more than happy to give that to him. Especially tonight. 

"Tell me exactly what you need, Princess."

**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos are always greatly appreciated!! pls let me know what u thought ♡  
> feel free to follow me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/lowkeyamen) or send me any questions etc on [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/lowkeyamen)  
> thank u for reading!


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